What Is This Feeling?
by xheybails
Summary: What if Jane had gone to BCU after all? And what if her roommate was a certain blonde med student? AU. One-shot.


**Title: **What Is This Feeling?

**By:** Bailee

**Summary:** What if Jane had gone to BCU after all? And what if her roommate was a certain blonde med student? AU. One-shot.

**Disclaimer: **I don't own, I rent.

**A/N: **Inspired by the Wicked song of the same name. Since I started watching this show, every time I hear this song, I can't help but think how this could so easily be how Jane and Maura meet. Ever since, I've wanted to do a fic about it, so now I finally am. Hope you guys like it!

**What Is This Feeling?**

Jane trudged her way back up to her dorm Friday afternoon after field hockey practice. Covered in mud from the wet field, she hoped that either her roommate wouldn't mind the mess or she wouldn't have arrived yet.

Jane was able to move in early the week before because her team began practicing early but today was the general move in day and she was really excited to meet her new roommate. She had already become friends with a few girls on the team, but since she found out she was going to be able to come to BCU, she had dreamed of being best friends with her roommate; staying up studying, watching movies, going out together, that kind of thing.

"What are you doing?! You're going to get mud all over my things!"

That was the first thing her roommate ever said to her. Jane instantly clenched her jaw and narrowed her eyes into a glare.

"I didn't touch any of your things. Geez. Calm down, will you?"

Jane watched as the blonde's eyes narrowed even further and her already stony expression turned even colder. Before she could speak, however, Jane snatched up a clean pair of clothes and muttered under her breath.

"Whatever, I'm going to shower."

Jane thought back over her first interaction with her roommate. She hasn't even learned her name yet, and she already had Jane fuming. It was going to be a long semester if this was what she had to look forward to.

How dare come at me like that? No hello, no introductions, nothing, just straight to the yelling.

If Jane had wanted someone to nag her everyday, she would have kept living at home. This was not how she wanted this to go! She was not going to be one of those people who did nothing but complain about her roommate.

But Jane just didn't see any way she could get along with that girl.

Jane quickly rinsed the rest of the conditioner out of her hair and shut off the water before wrapping her long, dark hair in a towel. She then dried off and got dressed as fast as she could, but then lingered in front of the mirror, something she never did.

Slowly, she unwrapped the towel on her head and shook her hair free, patting it dry as best as she could and ran her fingers through the tangled locks before brushing the rest out.

She even took the time to take the remainder of her eye make up off with the remover her mother had bought her, but she had never bothered to use. She finished her routine with some moisturizer before brushing her teeth.

When she finally had no more excuse to linger in the bathroom, she sighed, collected her things and walked back to her room.

She opened the door slowly, peeking her head in, relieved to see her roommate was no longer in there.

Jane quickly tossed her dirty clothes in her laundry basket and flopped onto her bed, shoving her earbuds in her ear and closing her eyes. Even though it was only four in the afternoon, the exhaustion from a week of practice was finally catching up with her and she felt herself drifting off.

She had no idea how much time had passed, but when Jane woke, the sky had already grown dark and her music had stopped playing. She could hear the faint sound of keyboard strokes and she opened her eyes a hair to see her roommate typing furiously at her desk on the other side of the room.

She sat up slowly, her eyes adjusting to the light. She tried to remain as quiet as possibly but the blonde turned her head when the spring in Jane's bed creaked.

"Do you always sleep in your shoes like that?"

Jane raised an eyebrow, and before she could stop herself, the words were tumbling out of her mouth.

"I don't know, do you always sound like such a snob like that?"

The blonde sighed and quickly looked away, but not before Jane saw the hurt expression on her face.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean that. That was too much. I don't even know your name, I've got no right to judge you like that."

Maura turned back to her roommate, surprised at the sincerity in her voice. Her features softened slightly and a hint of a smile tug at her lips.

"I'm Maura, Maura Isles."

Jane gave a small smile at the other girl's slightly warmer tone and replied softly, "Jane Rizzoli."

Maura smiled back at her, still a little unsure, but satisfied that it looked like they may be able to get along after all.

"So, Maura, where are you from?"

"Oh, I'm from here in Boston originally, but I've spent the last several years at a boarding school in France."

"France, huh? And you're slumming it in a basic dorm like the rest of us?"

"I thought it might be beneficial in receiving the typical college experience."

Jane just nodded, then glanced at the clock, noting that it was nearly seven. "I'm going to go grab some dinner. You, uh, you want to come?"

"Sure, that would be lovely."

**- R & I -**

"Mmm, they really do have the best pizza here."

"Authentic Italian cuisine," Maura read slowly off her napkin.

"What? You don't think they're legit? Their last name is Rosetti. Sounds pretty damn Italian to me."

"Oh, I'm sure they do hail from Italy originally. It's just...did you know that pizza didn't originate in Italy?"

"It didn't?"

"No!" Maura exclaimed, eager to share her knowledge with Jane. "Pizzas were actually first created in Greece; they baked large, round, flat breads which they topped with various items such as olive oils, spices, potatoes and other things. Tomatoes weren't yet discovered at that time or-"

"Woah, Google, slow down there!"

"Google?"

"Yeah, you're like Wikipedia or something, spouting off facts like that."

"Wikipedia is frequently incorrect."

"Do you always do that? The fact thing?"

"I suppose I do. I'd never given it much thought."

Before Jane could reply, Maura's cellphone interrupted them. She watched as the blonde looked at her caller id, pursed her lips slightly, then moved to stand.

"I'm just going to go take this outside."

Jane nodded and her eyes followed Maura out the door. Whoever it was, she didn't seem too excited to talk to them.

Jane sat alone in silence while she finished her slice of pizza, growing more curious by the second. Shoving the last few bits into her mouth, she gathered up their trash and disagreed it in the bin before heading out the door the blonde had just exited through.

Maura had her back turned toward Jane when she got outside and she couldn't help but overhear the tail end of her conversation.

"But you said you would be here, mother! I waited for you all morning and afternoon and you never showed...yes...yes, I know but...no, I'm sure it was important...this was important to me!"

Jane watched her ever-perfect posture slouch the slightest bit and Maura let out a sigh before speaking again.

"You could have called before to let me know...mother, you're in the middle of New York City, what do you mean you didn't have service? No, it doesn't matter...it's fine...okay, mother. Goodbye."

Maura turned to enter the restaurant once again and jumped slightly when she saw Jane standing just behind her, looking like a deer in headlights.

"Oh. Jane. I didn't realize you were out here. Uh…how much of that did you hear?"

"Enough. Your mom really bailed on you today?"

Maura simply nodded, glancing at the ground in an attempt to hide the saddened expression on her face. The last thing she wanted was for Jane to know about her crappy family.

"Geez, that sucks. I'm sorry she did that."

"It's fine. I'm used to it."

"That only makes it worse." Jane truly felt sorry for the girl. She began to understand Maura seemed to have trouble connecting with people, if that's the life she'd been living for the last eighteen years, it was a wonder she wasn't completely socially inept.

"Just forget about it, Jane, it doesn't matter. Are you done with dinner? We should probably get back before it gets too late. There's a extracurricular activities fair in the morning, I'd rather not be tired for it."

"Um, yeah, sure. But if you ever want to talk about-"

"I don't," Maura cut her off. She turned on her heels and walked in the direction of her dorm, hoping Jane would forget about what she had overheard.

**- R & I -**

Later that night, the two girls laid in the quiet, dark room, each absorbed in their own thoughts.

Maura couldn't help but be disappointed. Maybe she had been naive, it wouldn't have been the first time, but she had expected something entirely different when she had come to college. She had thought this was her chance to be someone new, to change, to be the girl who actually had friends.

She was beginning to see that probably wouldn't happen. And to top it all off, she knew Jane was now not only put off by her personality, she felt sorry for her. She could never respect her now, or think of her as an equal. That was even worse.

Maura let out a sigh. Maybe they could simply learn to coexist. She couldn't handle Jane walking on eggshells around her all the time, afraid to offend her or leave her out.

So her parents didn't have time for her. She was used to it.

So she didn't have any real friends. She was used to that too.

She didn't need Jane feeling sorry for her. She just had to make sure Jane knew that.

"It's okay, you know," Maura whispered into the darkness, hoping Jane was still awake.

"What is?"

"You don't have to be my friend. I'm used to people thinking I'm different. I'm used to being alone. So it's okay."

Jane was silent for quite a few minutes. It was so long that Maura thought maybe she fell asleep. She was about to close her own eyes and let the exhaustion overtake her when Jane finally replied.

"Maybe...maybe we could be friends."

Maura let out a sigh before speaking again. "I don't need your pity, Jane."

"I don't…I'm not…I don't pity you, Maura. I barely even know you. But I think I'd like to. Maybe...could we just...I don't know. Start over?"

Though Maura couldn't see her face in the dark room, she could sense the sincerity in the other girls voice and it brought a small smile to her lips.

"Yes, I think I would like that."

"Okay. Good. Goodnight, Maura."

"Goodnight, Jane."


End file.
